UCSC freshman presents football experiment at White House

UC Santa Cruz student Maria Hanes, 19, left, and President Obama watch as two cushioned helmets bump together as Obama toured the 2014 White House Science Fair exhibits on display in the State Dining Room of the White House on Tuesday. Hanes explained how she developed a concussion cushion football helmet. (Susan Walsh -- AP)

SANTA CRUZ &GT;&GT; Two years ago, Maria Hanes dropped her cell phone, setting off a chain of events that eventually took her to the White House.

Then a football team manager for her Edwards Air Force Base high school, Hanes said when she saw her phone's rubber case prevented it from cracking, she hatched an idea.

Hanes, now a UC Santa Cruz freshman, developed a football helmet sleeve designed to help prevent concussions. Hanes, 19, was one of 61 people to present projects at the White House Science Fair on Tuesday.

She had the opportunity to share her findings with President Obama in the Blue Room.

"I wasn't as nervous as I thought I would be," Hanes said. "He genuinely seemed interested in my project."

Dubbed the "Concussion Cushion," the gel sleeve reduces impact by 46 percent, said Hanes, who used a mechanical track to knock two helmets together and test the recoil. Her foam prototype was less successful, she said, since gel disperses energy more efficiently.

"Whenever the foam was used, it seemed as if it would absorb the impact and it would send it right back, like it would ricochet," Hanes said.

After seeing the cushion, Obama invited Hanes to Thursday's Healthy Kids & Safe Sports Concussion Summit, also at the White House. She had the opportunity to meet doctors, field experts and former NFL players, she said.

Hanes was approached by several who offered to help with further testing and possible manufacturing, and said she's excited to test the model in real-life situations.

Hanes said her brother suffered four concussions on the football field.

"My mom bought him the newest helmet she could to protect him the best way, but the last play of the last game, senior year, he got hit hard," Hanes said. "The helmet actually cracked and he got a concussion."

Hanes, who wants to coach college football one day, said in her three years as team manager, she witnessed dozens of head injuries.

"I want them to be able to play football, but when stuff like this happens, it's like, 'Oh man, is it worth it?'," she said. "I know parents feel the same way."